Radioactive
by osirisredgirl
Summary: As Champion, Lyra expected new responsibilities like dealing with the press and diplomatic visits, as well as the thrill of everyone knowing her name. But even as Champion, she can't escape the past.


The weatherman on the news that morning had said that Johto was experiencing an unusually hot summer, and would continue to experience fiery, hell-hot, surface-of-the-sun temperatures for at least another week or two. Even Olivine City, which Lyra had flown to that morning on the back of her Noctowl (who wasn't thrilled by the prospect of being used as transportation while the sun was still shining), was stifling. The air was thick and warm, even as she stood in line on the dock waiting for her turn to board the S.S. Aqua.

Even Feraligatr, which had once swum from Olivine to Cianwood carrying her on his back, was turning up his nose at the idea of swimming before their journey. "Can't say I blame you," Lyra muttered, as she squinted at the horizon.

Since becoming Champion five years earlier, Lyra had spent most of her time training at the Elite Four's facility in Indigo Plateau. Aside from the occasional battle against a challenger, (most of whom would choke halfway through the battle from nerves), it wasn't quite the same as the journey that she'd taken with her pokemon across the region. She'd been itching to travel for the past few years, but every time she seriously considered a new journey, a challenger would burst through the door that led to Karen's chambers and demand a battle.

Every few minutes, she could have sworn that she heard some of the nearby trainers muttering to each other about how _That's the Champion! The girl who beat Lance!_ She pulled her hat down an inch to try and shield herself from the sun and from their gaze. She knew their type. All of them wanted to beat the League Challenge, but none of them knew what kind of responsibility they'd have if they actually won.

The fact that Feraligatr was outside his pokeball was attracting a far amount of attention. Many of the pokemon that walked beside their trainers were the size of a poochyena or meowth. Feraligatr, however, towered over her at an imposing seven feet, seven inches and had a large, powerful jaw with exposed teeth that were long and sharp.

"Feraligatr," he grunted, as the line moved forward.

"I know, I know," she muttered, "I don't like it either." When she was journeying around Johto, collecting badges, it was different. With each badge, she proved something about herself and her pokemon. They were strong and fierce and deserved to win. But now, there was nothing. The challenge was hollow and as much as she had loved the newspaper headlines and television interviews, she hated it.

"Ticket please," a sailor prompted when she reached the beginning of the line. It took her a moment to rummage through her bag before she was able to produce it.

She expected the gate leading to the ship to open after she handed over her ticket, but the sailor kept turning it over in his hands as though he had just been handed a free ultra ball.

"What business does the Champion have in Kanto?"

"That's really _none_ of _your_ business. Now open the gate," she snapped. In reality, Lance had convinced her that it would be okay to take some time off, but the fact that she'd been asked at all made her feel defensive, even though she had nothing to be defensive about. The sailor looked as though he was about to press the matter further until Feraligatr growled at him.

"Fine, fine," he muttered, as the gate clicked open.

As she boarded the ship with Feraligatr, she couldn't help but be in awe. There were trainers from all over Johto on the ship, exchanging battle strategies and showing off their pokemon. There were other travelers as well, including a man in a fiery red and orange outfit that looked like the Firebreathers that Lyra had seen perform in Ecutreak City.

"Isn't this fantastic, Feraligatr?" It was hard to stop smiling, especially since it was finally sinking in that the ship would soon be departing for Vermillion City in Kanto. "We've never been to Kanto before - well, Indigo Plateau doesn't count." Indigo Plateau, after all, had been created because it had space for a facility that could house the Elite Four, as well as the Champion of the region.

"Feraligatr!"

"Oh yes, right, we should go check out our room!" During her travels around Johto, her 'room' had more often than not been a tent that she pitched on a route near the next town or a large room shared with other trainers in a Pokémon Center. Most of her money had gone towards purchasing potions, full heals and pokéballs that she could use when she was between cities. As a result, it was hard not to be a little bit smug about her status as Champion when it afforded her the opportunity to have her own room on a nice ship.

Just as she was about to turn and walk down the hall to find her room, a man crashed into her. Fortunately, Feraligatr caught her before she could hit the floor, but it still took her a moment to regain her balance. "What the hell!" She was about to tell the man that he needed to be careful, especially on a ship, where it was difficult enough to walk around - but the look in his eyes made her pause. "Are you alright, sir?"

"No, no," he muttered, "I'm so sorry - but I seem to have lost my granddaughter."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Lyra frowned. "But maybe one of the sailors would be able to help?" She had turned around and was about to head towards her room when she heard the man say something that made her stop in her tracks.

"I'm sorry, Miss Gold, right? I just would feel more comfortable with the Champion looking for her."

She bit her lip and turned back to face the man. "Feraligatr and I will do what we can."

He brightened at her response. "Oh, thank you so much Miss Gold!"

She gave him a weak smile in return as he rushed off to the other side of the ship. "What did you think of that, Feraligatr?"

"Feral-igatr."

Feraligatr's response made her raise an eyebrow. "I'm sure she's just off somewhere playing with someone's marill or something like that," Lyra muttered dismissively. "Let's go find our room."

She was about to set off to look for it when Feraligatr pulled her back. "Feraligatr," he grunted.

Lyra blinked up at him. "I don't think it's a big deal. There's loads of trainers on the ship - there's no way that she could just get lost without someone seeing her somewhere."

"_Feraligatr._"

"Fine, we'll go look for her," Lyra sighed as she glanced longingly down the hallway. The ship had just begun its journey to Kanto, and she had been looking forward to curling up in her nice, big room with her battle strategy notes. "I honestly don't know why you're making such a big deal about this."

Lyra had no idea where they'd begin to search for a girl on a liner as big as the S.S. Aqua. Every time she turned around, she saw more trainers and their pokemon. There was no sign of a little girl wandering around in between them.

"Feraligatr!"

She whipped around to see that Feraligatr was standing by the stairs that led to the ship's lowest level. She kept her gaze firmly fixed on the floor, determined not to draw too much attention to herself as she followed him away from the crowds of trainers. "Are you sure that she's down there?" Feraligatr typically had a strong intuition, though for all she knew, he could have been detecting the crew's food or a secret pokémon-only swimming pool.

"Miss Gold?"

Her heart nearly stopped when she heard one of the sailors address her by name. "Sorry?" She really hoped that she didn't look as nervous as she felt.

"The lower level of the ship is off limits to passengers," he commented, as he raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you go back to your room?"

It was hard to argue with the man, even when she had Feraligatr backing her up. He seemed to take up the entire corridor with his presence. "Yes, sorry - I was just, um, lost." She knew exactly where her room was, as she had passed it as she followed Feraligatr to the stairs that led to the ship's lower level, but it seemed like a solid explanation.

His expression softened at the word 'lost'. "If you ask Tom - he's the man standing at the end of the hallway - he'll be able to help you find your room."

"Okay, thank you."

Despite the fact that Lyra would have preferred to spend the entire evening in her room away from the buzz of excited trainers who were journeying to Kanto for the first time to start new adventures, she couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy. "I think there's something down there, Feraligatr," she whispered to her companion. "And I'm going to find out what."

At 3:35AM, Lyra pushed her door open and squinted as she stared down the hallway in both directions. Despite the fact that Feraligatr's presence always made her feel more secure, he was the equivalent of a seven foot tall bodyguard and clearly attracted way too much attention. Once she was certain no one was around, she darted across and descended the ladder at the end of the hallway.

From her perch at the top of the ladder, she couldn't see much - there were a lot of large crates, but other than that, there wasn't anything too suspicious looking.

As she wandered around, she couldn't help but think that maybe the suspiciousness she'd observed was in her head. After all, a year earlier, Silver had shown up to her home unannounced, telling tales of grotesque experiments that Team Rocket was conducting outside of Johto. Even though she was the Champion, she hadn't experienced real adventure since she'd defeated Lance years earlier. Maybe she was just desperate to experience the thrill again.

That was until she noticed the pool of blood behind one of the crates, and the crumpled wings of a venomoth on the back of a human girl.


End file.
